The Minister for the Environment, Mr Cullen, has demanded of his British counterpart that all emissions from the Sellafield nuclear power plant into the Irish Sea cease immediately.
During what he described as a "frank" meeting with British Energy Minister Mr Brian Wilson in Dublin this morning, Mr Cullen addressed Irish concerns of radioactive waste discharges from the plant in Cumbria.
|
|
Concerns have been raised over
safety at the Sellafield nuclear plant |
"We regard these discharges as objectionable and totally unacceptable," Mr Cullen said, arguing that Sellafield poses "an unacceptable risk to the Irish people".
Last week, a study by the Irish Radiological Protection Institute last week claimed that radioactive discharge from Sellafield continued to be the dominant source of contamination of the Irish Sea. The Government has begun legal action to stop it operating.
"There is no justification, economic or environmental for the continuation of operations at the Sellafield nuclear plant," the minister insisted.
Mr Cullen also raised newspaper reports that the roof of the building was damaged and at risk of leaking. The Guardianclaimed yesterday that a £100 million sterling package was needed prevent a radioactive leak from a 50-year-old facility which stores waste before it is released into the Irish Sea.
"The concerns of the Irish people on Sellafield are real and justified," Mr Cullen said. He would be formally writing to both the British government and British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) about his "real and justified" concerns.
BNFL denied the report, saying the building was routinely inspected and posed no immediate safety concerns.
Mr Wilson said today the issue was being dealt with "in a proper way". He pointed out that Britain had an even bigger interest in ensuring the safety of the plant than Ireland.